Falling For The Bad Boy
by Nana Sakura
Summary: Kaori Nashidake thinks she's in love with Mac Fraser, but discovers more and more that she really is falling for another certain crazy individual.


**Read!**

Hey there! So this is I'd say my first official story on here. I randomly got in this huge mood to write a SSX Tricky fanfic, and I am so excited! I've been meaning to write a story on here for such a long time. I do apologize if any characters seem out-of-character (OOC). I will try to make them as in-character as possible, although I can't promise anything. I have a lot planned for this story, and I fully intend to continue and come out with new chapters. I will do my best to write frequently and keep this story updated. I will say sorry ahead of time if I ever take a long time to write. Anyway, I am a huge SSX Tricky fan and I would love to share this story with you guys. I do not own SSX Tricky or any of its characters. Please enjoy!

**Chapter 1: Bad Night At The Club**

Kaori watched Mac press his fingers to the CDs at his booth and expertly mix some toons, filling the entire club with a hip beat that made everyone want to bop their heads to the sound and dance until they lost themselves in the music. It was a mix between Techno and Hip Hop that had the good 'ol untz untz untz and occasional whirr. Mac seemed to be enjoying himself immensely and was pleased to see people beginning to sway in the middle of the room, bumping into each other as the lights above flashed neon colors. She admired the passion he clearly felt when he DJ'd. It was somehow inspiring to Kaori, and she gazed infatuatedly as he got into it. She liked the way his eyes lit with pure energy and life as he tapped his foot and got this determined look on his face. She couldn't tear her eyes away.

The room was already getting hot as sweat began to perspire from rapidly moving bodies, and Kaori started feeling uncomfortable in the crowded space. She had never imagined herself coming to a place like this, a club of all places, but the SSX crew had all decided to go. Kaori felt bad about being the only one left out, so she reluctantly agreed to go along. The only thing that made her more enthusiastic was the fact that this was potential time with Mac outside of the tournament, but as the night wore on it was becoming clear to Kaori that she would be alone tonight. She pictured her comfortable bed back at the hotel with her favorite pink fuzzy blanket and sighed heavily as she longed to snuggle up inside its warmth with her special little brown bear. She stuck to her corner to avoid any confrontations, and simply chose to watch the commotion around her. It was hard to spot everyone from the group with so many people in one place, but she could see Eddie doing the worm in the center of the dance floor, break dancing and doing the robot, earning "Oohs" and "Ahhs" from nearby onlookers who urged him on. Kaori laughed quietly to herself at the scene and rolled her eyes when she noticed Psymon laughing manically at something as a few faces of strangers stared at him in a mixture of annoyance and horror.

Kaori began to feel awkward leaning against the wall by herself, staring aimlessly at the crowd as she caught a few suspicious glances her way. She got out her cell phone in an attempt to appear somewhat not anti-social. Her fingers moved like she was texting and she stared at the little panda peering over the top attached to her pink phone case, her eyebrows furrowed in concentration at looking preoccupied. It wasn't the first time she felt so out of place, and it filled her with such an unpleasant sensation of being an outsider that was all too familiar to Kaori. She glanced upward when she heard loud guffaws of laughter, noticing Marisol and Seeiah joking about something amongst themselves as they took shots. She was surprised to see them eyeing her, and began to walk her way. Marisol was already very noticeably drunk, tripping over herself in stiletto heels as she waddled her way over; Seeiah in tow.

"Hey Kay-uri, what's up girl?" Marisol put her arm around Kaori, making her feel uneasy as she sagged under Marisol's body leaning heavily against her.

Kaori tried to keep herself steady. "H-hi… what is up, Marisol?" She focused on sounding clear. Over the time Kaori had spent with the SSX crew, she had quickly found out English was harder than she thought. She had studied it in school and did alright in class (when she wasn't too busy chatting merrily with friends about the latest K-pop stars, or drawing bunnies and hearts in her notebook). She knew enough to have a decent conversation at least, but once stranded on her own with English speakers, it became clear that her accent was heavier than she thought and the others had a very difficult time understanding her. Often her sentences and words had to be repeated for clarification, and many times she didn't have the words she was looking for. Kaori took it upon herself to learn more English for the sake of communication because it was vital. Without it, she was alone and earned the pitiful glances of the others. It made her feel like such a stranger in these foreign countries and it was the first time in her life that she felt utterly alone. What was she supposed to do if she couldn't even talk to anyone? So she hit the books, and luckily her work paid off. She put herself out there and finally had some decent relationships with the others.

"Look at her, she's so tiny! How does she even snowboard with all of us? You need to eat girl!" Seeiah nudged Kaori with her fist and shook her head. "How old are you again? 15?"

Kaori's eyes dug penetrating holes in the ground as they looked her up and down. "I am sevunteen."

"Oh for real?! I couldn't tell, you just kinda look like a kid. I'm surprised they let you in this club!"

Their words stung. Kaori could feel a pit forming in her stomach. She did not reply, she didn't know how to. Her lips formed a tight line as her throat closed up in a suffocating way.

"What are you doing in this corner? Why aren't you dancing like the rest of us, huh?"

Kaori shrugged, trying to distract herself by looking at the crowd. She noticed Mac among them, dancing and doing funny moves with his body. He must've stopped DJ'ing to come on the dance floor. He spotted her a few moments later looking, and to her delight, began to wave at her excitedly. Kaori couldn't help but feel her heart leap and she felt herself get a huge smile as she hurried and waved back. Mac grinned and mouthed something that Kaori couldn't decipher, then winked and continued dancing. Kaori stared, flabbergasted as heat rushed her face. Did he just wink at her?

"Awww, look! She's blushing! She totally has the hots for Mac." Marisol shook Kaori and laughed. "I can't believe it!"

"No, no, no! Not at all!" The words rushed out of Kaori's mouth in horror. "Mac is friend, that is all."

"Oh please, girl. It's written all over your face. It's so obvious! You think we haven't seen you staring at him all night?"

"Leave the poor girl alone Marisol." Kaori was surprised to hear another voice interject, and looked over to see that Elise had walked over along with Brodi.

"What, it's funny! _Muy entretenido!"_ Marisol laughed shamelessly and flipped her blonde hair with her hand. "So what are you doing here Elise? Aren't you too high and mighty for a place like this?"

Elise put a hand to her hip and eyed Marisol with disdain. "That outfit suites you, honey. Was it cheap?"

Marisol glared at Elise but then smiled. "You wish you had as good of taste as me sweetie. Now run off to daddy before you have a fit."

"Actually, I was just leaving." Elise did a little, "Hmph!" as she turned on her heel towards the exit, muttering something about, "I knew this would happen," and "Eddie better thank me for this."

Brodi was quick to follow her, "This place is bad for my Zen vibes."

Elise and Brodi began to walk away, and Kaori saw the opportunity. "Me too. Big day to-maar-row." Kaori took a few steps and out of nowhere felt herself fly forward, gasping, _"Eeiah!"_ She tumbled hard to the ground and cried out on impact. The beaming faces of Marisol and Seeiah loomed over her menacingly as they bursted with hearty laughter.

"Wow, you're clumsy Kay-uri. Better watch your step next time chica."

Kaori stared helplessly at the two girls grinning ear to ear. "You tripped me!"

"Now THAT is quite the accusation," Marisol fake pouted, pretending to be hurt but Kaori could see the smirk in her eyes.

"Dude, she probably doesn't even know what _accusation_ means." Seeiah joked, a huge "Pffffffft" rushing out of her mouth as they cracked up. "Whoops!"

Kaori wanted to run away right then and there, but luckily Marisol and Seeiah wandered off back into the crowd. She wanted to cry and felt utterly humiliated as she lay pathetically on the floor, holding onto the foot that took the most brute force of the fall. Her ankle had twisted a little funny and stung slightly. "_Etaiii…_" Kaori moaned when she lifted herself back up and put weight on her foot. The pain wasn't terrible but it definitely wasn't pleasant. Kaori folded her arms and felt the urge to burst into tears, but she bit her lip to hold them back. All she wanted to do was to go home. She didn't care how, just as long as she could hide herself from everyone in her room as soon as possible.

Marching for the exit, Kaori did her best to squeeze through the crowd, taking special care to try and not put weight on her right foot as much as she could. She was pushed and rubbed against as she made her way, causing her to motivate her to move faster as she grimaced uncomfortably. On her way, she noticed Mac dancing nearby. He was getting intimate with a girl as they grinded and rubbed their bodies together feverishly, hands wandering and sweat glistening in the dim flashing lights. Kaori's heart dropped and she got dizzy. She knew if she didn't get out of that damn club right then, she was sure she'd pass out. Before bursting into the night air, she caught a glimpse of Psymon watching her leave, his gaze curious and eyes like a hawk's. Had he been observing her this whole time? It sent a shiver down her spine and she rushed to find a cab.

The site of the hotel was a welcome one indeed. The cab rolled up to the entrance and stopped gracefully at the curb. Kaori gave the taxi driver the appropriate amount of money owed and almost ran through the double doors all the way to her hotel room. She expected to see Elise, her current roommate for the race Garibaldi, but the room appeared empty. Collapsing onto the bed, Kaori held tightly onto herself, wrapping her arms around her legs and burying her face in them. Now with the much needed privacy of her bedroom, she let the tears fall. Her chest heaved as she gulped down air, trying to forget the events of the night. The images flashed through her mind angrily and the moments relived themselves in vivid detail as if to torture her. She thought about the cruel words of Marisol and Seeiah, tripping over Marisol's foot, their laughter and Mac. Oh, Mac. Him and that girl…

Kaori shook her head, erasing the memories from her mind and told herself to be strong. This wasn't a big deal. What was she so upset over? There were mean people in the SSX group, that's to be expected. But the others were nice. Right? Everyone else treated her good enough, so she knew she wasn't alone. Elise was nice to her, she stood up for her tonight. Brodi was always so humble and kind, and Eddie. They were all nice to her. Kaori told these things to herself, but for some reason, she still felt the same; empty and sad.

Forcing herself to get up, Kaori stripped herself of her clothing and put on her pajamas. After brushing her teeth, she crawled under the covers of her bed and pressed her teddy bear against her chest, digging her fingers into its sweet brown fur to ensure she felt its warmth radiating next to her; seeking some kind of comfort in her furry little friend. She closed her eyes tight and did her best to only think about positive, happy things. Rainbows, hearts, the snow, laughing with her friends in Japan, Mac's smile. The last thing she saw before drifting into a dreamless sleep was a picture of Mac embracing Kaori lovingly and them laughing in the sunset. Kaori sighed happily at the fantasy before her vision went black.

**Cheesy? Yeah, maybe a little. But it's what I'm good at. :P Stay tuned for more excitement (particularly more Psymon…hell yea!) and drama. Thank you for reading! Reviews are always appreciated.**


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